News

From the desk of the Supreme Secretary

THANK YOU

by Scott T. Pogorelec, F.I.C.

It is hard to believe that the Fall Season
is upon us! It is always my favorite
time of the year as the air gets a bit crisper
and the beautiful colors begin to form.
This time of the year also allows us the
opportunity to not only look forward to
the holiday season, but
to look back at the wonderful
times had over
the summer months.
The Slovak Catholic
Sokol had a busy summer
calendar filled with
great memories and
true fraternalism.

Our 49th International
Slet was held at SUNY Brockport
in Brockport, NY from July 17th-21st.
Our Sokol youth from eight participating
Groups displayed their fine athletic
ability in the best traditions of the Sokol
Movement. Congratulations to our Slet
Flag winner, Group 4, Chicago, IL, and to
our John J. Stofko Memorial Spirit Award
winner, Group 1, Passaic, NJ! I would
also like to thank our Supreme Physical
Fitness Board, our Group Physical Fitness
Staffs, and all who had a hand in
making the 49th International Slet so successful
and memorable. Great job!

Two weeks after our Slet, the elected
delegates of the Slovak Catholic Sokol
met in Cleveland, OH for our 33rd Quadrennial
Convention. The Convention is
the highest governing body in the life of
a fraternal organization. I want to thank
the 173 Delegates who took the time out
of their busy schedules to participate and
give back to the organization. Decisions
that were made at this Convention will
guide our organization in the coming four
years and beyond. I would like to commend
our Supreme President, Michael
J. Horvath, who served as Chairperson
of the Convention. It is not an easy job
to navigate through the agenda, but
Brother Mike did a wonderful job in being
effi cient and keeping us on task. I would
also like to recognize our Supreme Vice-
President, Edward D. Moeller, for stepping
in and assisting Brother Mike where
necessary.

I would like to give a special thank
you to Bishop Roger Gries, O.S.B.,
Auxiliary Bishop Emeritus, Diocese of
Cleveland, who was the celebrant at our
beautiful opening Mass at The Cathedral
of St. John the Evangelist. Thank you to
our Supreme Chaplain, Rev. Andrew S.
Hvozdovic for all his efforts in organizing
the beautiful liturgy, which testifies to the
great faith in our organization.

In the coming issues, you will
have the opportunity to read about the
proceedings at our 33rd Quadrennial
Convention. An important role of the
Delegates is to elect members of the Supreme
Assembly. On this page, you will
find the newly elected Supreme Officers
who will serve our organization for the
next four years. I would like to thank our
Delegates for their trust in me to serve
as your Supreme Secretary and I extend
warm fraternal wishes to all our newly
elected and reelected Officers. Once
again, thank you!

Congratulations to all our flight winners
at the recent 64th International Golf
Tournament held in Beaver, PA at the
beautiful Seven Oaks Country Club.
A wonderful time was had by all and
the spirit of fraternalism shone brightly.
Thank you to the Greek Catholic Union
for their generous hospitality and for being
truly gracious hosts. Thank you to our
Director of Sports and Athletics, James
C. Matlon, and his entire staff for their efforts
to make this wonderful event a success.
A big congratulations to our 2019
Frank S. Petruff Award winner, Mary
Margaret Starr, from V-054, Youngstown,
OH. Mary is a longtime attendee at our
golf tournaments and truly deserving of
this honor. Congratulations Mary!

Finally, I wish to congratulate Brother
Clifford A. Moeller, Sr. on being selected
as the 2019 Slovak Catholic Sokol
Fraternalist of the Year. There is a beautiful
writeup in this edition of the Falcon
to learn more about Brother Cliff. As you
will see, Cliff is certainly deserving of this
tribute and we thank him for his many
years of service and hard work in the
best traditions of our fine organization.
Thank you and congratulations Brother
Cliff!

Until next time, enjoy the last few
days of summer and may God Bless you
all!